[Reader-list] one world vs. One World (TM) (Inc.) (C)
Shuddhabrata Sengupta
shuddha at sarai.net
Tue Sep 18 12:17:09 IST 2001
Here is avery long e mail - a compilation of 14 postings that was sent to me
by Kamla Bhasin.
It acts as a follow up to Harsh Kapoor's circualtion of the notice for a
Peace Vigil and to the last posting I made with the statement of an Anti War
Group in Austin, Texas, USA.
I would not have ordinarily sent such a posting on to the readers list,
because of its length. But if anyone has the patience to actually go through
this one they would realise that these are statements against war from
Israel, India, Pakistan, the Afghan diaspora in Pakistan,Australia, America
and Europe. In order of appearance, they are -
1.]Coalition of Women for Peace / Israel & Palestine
2.] Text Distributed at one of the Vigils held on 15 September 2001 Saturday
in London, UK}
3.]Statement from the War Resisters League, USA
4.]Proposition One Committee, USA
5.]Statement by THE GREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES
6.]Draft Statement by a coalition of Australian Anti War Groups
7.]STATEMENT BY THE FORUM OF INDIAN LEFTISTS , USA
8.]Statement by South Asia Forum for Human Rights, Nepal
9.]Letter to George Bush by 60 signatories against war (signatories are from
India, Pakistan, USA and many countries in Europe
10.]Statement Codemning Terrorism in New York and appealing against the
unleashing of War on Afghanistan by RAWA - the Revolutionary Association of
Afghan Women
11.]Statement by the Campaing for Nuclear Disarmamant and Peace (CNDP) New
Delhi
12.]Text of the Dalai Lama's message to George Bush
13.] Press Statement by NGO Coalition for an International Criminal Court
14.] Statemnent by Human Rights Watch - "Civilian Life Must Be Respected"
Clearly a case of 'one world' saying something quite different from
One World (TM) (Inc.) (C)
Cheers
Shuddha
Apologies for the length of this posting
________________________________________________________
Dear Friends,
I am sharing with you a series of statements (14 of them) from different
peace initiatives elsewhere, which have been sent to me by various
friends.
In solidarity
Kamla Bhasin
=========
[1.]
Coalition of Women for Peace / Israel
Dear friends,
It seems that the nightmare has just begun and that the terrible events
of
the past week are only the beginning of a war that seems inevitable.
At the Coalition's last meeting we decided that we should make our voice
against the war heard.
As a first step we will publish an ad in Thursday's newspaper, and
follow
it on Friday by a special Woman in Black vigil.
Our ad will be published in the "Haaretz" newspaper this Thursday. The
next
day, Friday, September 21, 10:00 AM, we will hold a national Women in
Black vigil opposite the US Embassy in Tel Aviv calling on the US
government to stop the war.
During the vigil we will request the US Ambassador to receive a
delegation
of women that will hand him a letter containing the text of the ad,
addressed to the President of the US. We will also address the same
letter
and send it to the Israeli Prime Minister and othe Israeli officials
(See
below the text of the ad/letter).
We would like to suggest that you join us in this or in similar
actions
as part of an international campaign against the war. As every Women in
Black vigil is independent and autonomous, each group can determine its
own
format, signs, and agenda. The more vigils and actions, the more the
political leadership around the world will get the message: This war is
unacceptable. Period.
If you can organize a vigil or any action against the war in your city,
or
if you know of any action that is being organized, please let us know
and
we will inform all the contacts in the Coalition's and Women in black
network.
Please forward this message to as many others as possible.
If you need additional information or need assistance please contact us:
Miri Krasin razizvi at post.tau.ac.il until Friday, September 21.
Debby Lerman debbyl at actcom.co.il from Saturday, September 22.
Debby Lerman
AD/ LETTER TO BE PUBLISHED THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20
Stop this war!
We - Palestinian and Jewish women from Israel, activists who have
worked
for many years to achieve a just peace and the end of Occupation -
feel
shocked and numbed by the murderous terrorist attack against New York
and
Washington. Deeply shaken by the immense pain and destruction, we wish
to
extend our condolences to the families of the victims, express our deep
empathy and solidarity with the American people, and condemn the murder
and injury of innocent people.
To end the cycle of violence:
· The governments of Israel and the USA must immediately stop
their
campaign of racist slander that turns reality into a mythic struggle
between Good and Evil, between a "superior" western culture and an
"inferior" Muslim one.
· The government of the U.S.A. must abstain from violent
retaliation
that can only lead to further escalation and to more killing.
· The government of Israel must stop taking advantage of the
international numbness and shock to intensify assaults against the
Palestinian people.
The racist campaign against the Muslim and Arab world, and the war and
terror being launched as the next step, can only stop the hope of
finding
real solutions to the problem of world terror, while bringing about
more
destruction and death.
The Coalition of Women for Peace
==========
2
[This was distributed at one of the vigils held on 15 September 2001
Saturday in London, UK}
o o o
The initiatives listed below are the initiative from ARROW (Active
Resistance to the Roots of War), a non-violent direct action affinity
group
formed in September 1990 to oppose the Gulf War.
JUSTICE NOT VENGEANCE
We mourn the thousands who died in Tuesday's horrific atrocities. Out
thoughts are with those who have lost their loved ones in these terrible
crimes.
However, we must not respond to these evil acts by committing evil acts
of
our own. Lashing out militarily is not the answer, and would inevitably
cause deaths of many more people as unconnected with terrorism as were
those who died this week. Rather, we must bring the perpetrators to
justice
in a court of law.
WEEKLY VIGIL
Tuesdays, 6 pm, opposite Downing Street, London. Please come to show
your
opposition to the threatened use of force. This vigil was initiated by
ARROW and is supported by CDN.
EMAIL LIST
An email list for people trying to prevent (and, if necessary, limit)
US/UK
military action in response to the atrocities in New York and
Washington.
To join, please go tot the following website:
http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/Aftermath-11-September-2001/join
ARROW, c/o NVRN, 162 Holloway Road, London N7 8DQ
Phone (44) 020 7607 23 02
Email milanrai at btinternet.com
========
>3.) From the US
>
>http://www.warresisters.org/attack9-11-01.htm
>
> Statement from the War Resisters League
>
> New York, New York
> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
> September 11, 2001
>
>As we write, Manhattan feels under siege, with all bridges, tunnels, and
>subways closed, and tens of thousands of people walking slowly north
>from Lower Manhattan. As we sit in our offices here at War Resisters
>League, our most immediate thoughts are of the hundreds if not
>thousands of New Yorkers who have lost their lives in the collapse of the
>World Trade Center. The day is clear, the sky is blue, but vast clouds
>billow over the ruins where so many have died, including a great many
>rescue workers who were there when the final collapse occurred.
>
>Of course we know that our friends and co-workers in Washington, D.C.
>have similar thoughts about the ordinary people who have been trapped
>in the parts of the Pentagon which were also struck by a jet. And we
>think of the innocent passengers on the hi-jacked jets who were carried
>to their doom on this day. We do not know at this time from what
>source the attack came.
>
>We do know that Yasser Arafat has condemned the bombing. We
>hesitate to make an extended analysis until more information is
>available but some things are clear. For the Bush Administration to talk
>of spending hundreds of billions on Star Wars is clearly the sham it was
>from the beginning, when terrorism can so easily strike through more
>routine means.
>
>We urge Congress and George Bush that whatever response or policy
>the U.S. develops it will be clear that this nation will no longer target
>civilians, or accept any policy by any nation which targets civilians. This
>would mean an end to the sanctions against Iraq, which have caused
>the deaths of hundreds of thousands of civilians. It would mean not only
>a condemnation of terrorism by Palestinians but also the policy of
>assassination against the Palestinian leadership by Israel, and the
>ruthless repression of the Palestinian population and the continuing
>occupation by Israel of the West Bank and Gaza.
>
>The policies of militarism pursued by the United States have resulted in
>millions of deaths, from the historic tragedy of the Indochina war,
>through the funding of death squads in Central America and Colombia,
>to the sanctions and air strikes against Iraq. This nation is the largest
>supplier of "conventional weapons" in the world-and those weapons fuel
>the starkest kind of terrorism from Indonesia to Africa. The early policy
>support for armed resistance in Afghanistan resulted in the victory of the
>Taliban-and the creation of Osama Bin Laden.
>
>Other nations have also engaged in these policies. We have, in years
>past, condemned the actions of the Russian government in areas such
>as Chechnya, the violence on both sides in the Middle East, and in the
>Balkans. But our nation must take responsibility for its own actions. Up
>until now we have felt safe within our borders. To wake on a clear day to
>find our largest city under siege reminds us that in a violent world, none
>are safe. Let us seek an end of the militarism that has characterized
>this nation for decades.
>
>Let us seek a world in which security is gained through disarmament,
>international cooperation, and social justice not through escalation and
>retaliation. We condemn without reservation attacks such as those
>which occurred today, which strike at thousands of civilians-may these
>profound tragedies remind us of the impact U.S. policies have had on
>other civilians in other lands. We also condemn reflexive hostility
>against people of Arab descent living in this country and urge that
>Americans recall the part of our heritage that opposes bigotry in all
>forms.
>
>We are one world. We shall live in a state of fear and terror or we shall
>move toward a future in which we seek peaceful alternatives to violence,
>and a more just distribution of the world's resources. As we mourn the
>many lives lost, our hearts call out for reconciliation, not revenge.
>
> ****************
>
>This is not an official statement of the War Resisters League but was
>drafted immediately after the tragic events occurred. Signed and issued
>by members of the staff and Executive Committee of War Resisters
>League at the national office, September 11, 2001:
>
> asif ullah
> Carmen Trotta
> Chris Ney
> David McReynolds
> Joanne Sheehan
> Judith Mahoney Pasternak
> Melissa Jameson
>
> Contact: David McReynolds, 212-674-7268
> Joanne Sheehan, 860-889-5337
> War Resisters League, 212-228-0450
>
>
>
> War Resisters League
> 339 Lafayette Street
> New York, NY 10012
> (212) 228-0450
> fax (212) 228-6193
> wrl at warresisters.org
>
>Believing war to be a crime against humanity, the War Resisters
>League, founded in 1923, advocates Gandhian nonviolence as the
>method for creating a democratic society free of war, racism, sexism,
>and human exploitation.
>
>-------
>
>4.)
> From the US
>Reporting from Washington DC after the World Trade and Pentagon attacks:
>
>Vigilers outside the White House are safe, but banished two blocks away
>from their signs. I listened to C-Span radio call-in all day; many
>Americans are truly ignorant ("nuke Iran/Afghanistan/Iraq" - "fall down on
>your knees and pray to God, then retaliate"). A few made sense: "Don't
>jump to conclusions, we don't know who did this" - "Put them in jail;
>violence begets violence." One woman called to point out that the U.S. had
>been bombing Iraq, but C-Span cut her off. The ignorant were allowed to
>say their piece.
>
>Downtown DC was surreal this morning, as all the federal buildings sent
>their people home. Otherwise peaceful.
>
>Really worried about our friends in New York. Please let us know you're
>okay.
>
>Love and forgiveness,
>
>
>Ellen Thomas
>Proposition One Committee
>PO Box 27217, Washington DC 20038
>202-462-0757 -- fax 202-265-5389
>
>----
>
>5.)
>
>THE GREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES
>
>MEDIA ADVISORY
>For immediate release:
>Tuesday, September 11, 2001
>
>Contacts:
>Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator
>202-518-5624,
><http://us.f200.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=scottmclarty@yhoo.com&YY=15846&
>order=down&sort=date&pos=0>scottmclarty at yahoo.com
>
>
>GREENS CONDEMN THE VIOLENT ATTACKS ON NEW YORK, THE
>PENTAGON, AND PENNSYLVANIA
>
>WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Green Party of the United
>States condemns the violent attacks and mass murder at
>the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and near
>Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
>
>Greens offer their sympathy to people affected by the
>attacks, especially those injured, and to the loved
>ones of people killed or injured.
>
>"The Green Party opposes the use of violence for
>political ends, whether by government forces, by
>independent organizations, or by individuals, and we
>call all such tactics counterproductive! ," said Anita
>Rios, Co-Chair of the Green Party and a member of the
>Ohio Greens.
>
>"Whoever and whatever group is behind today's attacks
>have earned the revulsion and condemnation of the
>world, and have set back whatever cause they hoped to
>advance. We stand with all Americans, and with all
>the peaceful people of the world and grieve."
>
>Greens appeal for a careful response, after
>investigation, from the White House, and insist that
>rash and violent retaliation will only increase the
>loss of life, especially of the innocent.
>
>"Those responsible for these murders are attempting to
>terrorize Americans out of our faith in democracy,"
>said Ben Manski, Green Party Co-Chair and member of
>the Wisconsin Green Party. "They have crucified
>thousands of civilians in an attempt to intimidate the
>government into clamping down on American freedoms."
>
>"We ask our leaders to be swift and just," added Anita
>Rios.&n! bsp; "We ask that this horror not be compounded by
>the victimization or stigmatization of the innocent."
>
>
>The Green Party of the United States <http://gpus.org/>http://gpus.org
>
>
>END
======
6.
>Statement on the attacks today in the US
>
>DRAFT ONLY
>
>
>The organisations signed below wish to express their sincere sorrow for
>the enormous loss of life in the United States today. Our heartfelt
>condolences go out to the families and friends of the victims throughout
>the world as well as to the American people.
>
>We condemn all acts of terrorism, whether state sanctioned or the actions
>of individuals or small groups, as indefensible.
>
>Today's tragic events show us that our current strategies are not
>effective and do not promote peace. The US with the assistance of
>Australia has been attempting to construct artificial walls around its
>nation through schemes such as the National Missile Defence proposal. It is
>clear that no amount of military spending could have created a preventative
>solution to the attacks witnessed by the world today.
>
>We call for a calm response in the face of this tragedy. The world needs
>to take a deep breath before taking rash and counterproductive steps in
>retaliation for these attacks. We call on the international community and
>the Australian people not to allow this atrocity to increase hatred,
>racial and religious intolerance. We encourage our leaders to view this as
>an opportunity for Australia to assist the US and the world in its search
>for peaceful solutions to conflicts.
>
>We add our voices to those of colleagues around the world who recognise
>that true security can only be rooted in social and environmental
justice.
>
>Signed:
>The Wilderness Society
>Earth Worker
>Friends of Palestine
>Friends of the Earth Australia
>Action for Peace
>Canberra Program for Peace
>Rev. Ray Richmond, Wayside Chapel, uniting Church in Australia
>Australian AntiBases Campaign Coalition
>Campaign for International Cooperation and Disarmament (CICD)
>
=======
7.
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